Student’s Clever eBay Listing to Save School Taken Down by School District

A father and son's creative way to help save a school from being shut down has been quashed by school district officials. Casey Young, a former student at the Learning Center in Langhorne, Pennsylvania, suggested listing the school on eBay as a way to offset deep budgetary cuts.

The starting bid was $599,995 -- the exact amount the school needs to remain open for the 2012-2013 school year. The eBay listing described the school in a tongue-in-cheek manner, calling it a "pre-owned, but extremely successful public school."

Late Monday night, the eBay auction was pulled after a request from Neshaminy School District officials. Steve Young, Casey's father, said he received permission to list the school from a former superintendent who retired just last week. But school board president Ritchie Webb said the board would need to authorize any fundraisers.

The winning bidder would have received naming rights, the chance to deliver the graduation commencement speech, a season pass for two to the football games, a personalized school coffee cup, and one large pizza. An added bonus would have been choosing the school mascot.

The Youngs made headlines a decade ago when Steve, a film and TV writer, put his family up for sale on eBay for $5 million. While some bids were received, eBay removed the listing before any deal was finalized.